The present invention relates to a safety net system that is placed upright on the ground for restraining debris slides, such as mud slides.
A number of barriers for restraining falling rocks are known. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,819,915, Cargnel, a flexible barrier is disclosed that is provided with posts that pivot on a ground-anchored base plate, with the posts being held by wind bracing cables, some of which extend in an upstream direction and others of which extend in a downstream direction. An arresting net is secured to a series of spaced-apart horizontal ropes that are supported by the upstream wind bracing cable. U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,810, Rambaud, discloses a protective barrier that comprises a sheet of netting that is held upright by posts that in turn are held by upstream and downstream stays that are coupled to guide means that are further coupled to a mooring cable and to shock-absorbing means. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,395,105 and 5,524,875, both to Thommen, disclose low impact restraining systems. Unfortunately, these systems are not suitable for mud and debris slides, where the force is anywhere from 2 to 10 times as great as that of a low-impact rock slide.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a safety net system for mud and debris slides that is extremely effective, requires little maintenance, and is also economical.